The Second Sketch

I hadn't formally learned how to draw the second picture either. But thanks to constantly doodling whenever I had a moment, I had a decent level of skill.

The supporter seemed like someone who'd seen my drawings before. Well, there probably weren't many who hadn't. Back in school, and even after becoming an adult, I'd always carried a sketchbook around, drawing whenever the mood struck. I never even had to say that drawing was my hobby—anyone could tell just by looking at me.

"You can zoom in on the screen?"

"...Guess I'll have to turn off the broadcast when I'm handling business."

I ignored the supporter's nonsense and closed my sketchbook.

"Why didn't you screenshot it?"

"Then I'll show you again when I draw other monsters."

I carefully stored the sketchbook in the box. It was the one the supporter had sent, filled with art supplies.

After that, I shrugged off the shirt that had been getting in the way. Taking it off let me breathe easy.

"What're you into? You gay or something?"

"Tops are more comfortable off. On Earth, taking off your shirt gets you labeled a perv, so I held back. But in that other world, I always went shirtless. Not from the start, though."

"Nah. Aside from outliers like me, most folks wore shirts. It wasn't some primitive civilization where everyone ran around naked."

"I got those looks sometimes, but I'm not the type to care about what others think."

I ignored that chat too. The supporter was my benefactor for providing support, but that didn't mean I'd put up with every bit of nonsense.

"You think I'd...? Even in that world, going pantsless gets you arrested."

"Probably not? If it gets cold, maybe."

I should've ignored that one too. Why's this supporter so obsessed with a guy's body? Maybe it's not a guy—maybe a girl? As that thought crossed my mind, another chat popped up.

They meant the five circle patterns etched on my back.

"The pattern on my back isn't a tattoo—it's a seal array."

"Short for sealing magic array."

"Yeah. I heard each one that disappears releases a layer of the seal."

"Nope. Erasing a seal array isn't like wiping away a drawing with an eraser."

The supporter went silent after saying they'd look into support functions more closely. Honestly, I wasn't holding my breath. There was no way something like seal removal would be an option. Unless the support analyzed me and tailored conveniences, but even then.

Don't rely on the supporter for unsealing. I'll handle it myself.

There was one method I knew of. Among the monsters inhabiting the labyrinth, find one that could ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠wield unsealing magic. There had to be at least one like that.

Unknown-001 vanished from the supporter list. Shortly after, a new one arrived.

The previous supporter had changed their nickname. Same person, no doubt—the 001 tag confirmed it.

As expected, no seal support. I hadn't been hopeful anyway, so no disappointment.

"How'd you change your nickname?"

They'd paid real money for a nickname change ticket. 3 coins was 30,000 won—not chump change. I wanted to say it was a waste, but swallowed it. Their money, their call.

No coins came my way, though.

Checking my balance, it was unchanged. Looked like coins spent like that went straight to labyrinth development funds as fees.

"So what's Ppuru-ru mean?"

"How much for that?"

"You sure you can blow cash like that? Didn't you say you were broke?"

The supporter... no, Ppuru-ru vanished from the list again after that chat. About 30 seconds later:

Back with a weird entry ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠message. Total gacha fail, obviously.

I'd pegged her as impulsive, but surprisingly, she had self-control.

I placed the box in the center of the Central Chamber. Next to it, I leaned an analog clock at an angle.

Gazing at the clock, I asked Ppuru-ru, "Lu-ru. What time is it there?"

"You think I can't read a clock...? I was checking if this clock matches Korea time."

My body rhythm was synced to Earth Korea time. So I planned to keep my sleep pattern aligned with it too. When I'd gone to that other world and back, the mismatch had wrecked my condition for a while. In this situation, body management was key. No thanks to wrecked stamina from a sleep schedule slip-up.

"Who doesn't know that?"

"Make sense for once..."

If that was true, wasn't it worse than illiteracy? The thought flickered, but I shook it off quick.

"...Maybe some kids these days don't encounter analog clocks much."

Yeah, if they haven't learned it, they wouldn't know. Digital age means fewer analog clocks. What's common sense to me might not be to others. No good looking down on them for not ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠knowing what I do.

"Maybe they don't anymore... Nah, probably not. Guess they zoned out or slept in class. Let's not bash others."

"Thanks. But any digital clocks at home? Hate to say it after you sent it, but this one's no good for telling day from night."

"That'd be great."

Chatting with Ppuru-ru, I headed to Passage 3 entrance. Rested enough—time to resume scouting.

Unlike Passage 2's artificial feel, Passage 3 looked naturally carved over eons. Walls were rough and bumpy, not smooth; ceiling and floor irregular too. Overall, a bit larger than Passage 2.

"Dog Spider. Hop on my shoulder."

[Ssssk!]

I put Dog Spider-001 on my shoulder. No stepping on her by accident while walking.

The moment I stepped into Passage 3:

A second supporter arrived after one step.